THEAKSTON OLD PECULIER CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR

The UK books longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2025 were announced April 24.

The prize is presented by Harrogate International Festivals and sponsored by T&R Theakston Ltd., in partnership with Waterstones and the Daily Express. Readers are invited to determine the shortlist of nominees casting ballots here for six of the original 18 works. Voting closes May 15. The winner will be announced on July 17 at this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate, England.

• The Cracked Mirror, by Chris Brookmyre (Sphere)
• Our Holiday, by Louise Candlish (HQ)
• A Stranger in the Family, by Jane Casey (Hemlock Press)
• The Mercy Chair, by M.W. Craven (Constable)
• The Wrong Sister, by Claire Douglas (Michael Joseph)
• The Last Word, by Elly Griffiths (Quercus)
• Estella’s Revenge, by Barbara Havelocke (Hera)
• Redemption, by Jack Jordan (Simon & Schuster UK)
• The Final Act of Juliette Willoughby, by Ellery Lloyd (Pan)
• Finding Sophie, by Imran Mahmood (Raven)
• The Woman on the Ledge, by Ruth Mancini (Century)
• The Kill List, by Nadine Matheson (HQ)
• Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill Secker)
• Blood Like Mine, by Stuart Neville (Simon & Schuster UK)
• To Die in June, by Alan Parks (Canongate)
• Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Zaffre)
• The Last Murder at the End of the World, by Stuart Turton (Raven)
• All the Colours of the Dark, by Chris Whitaker (Orion)

BRITISH CRIME WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION (CWA) DAGGER AWARD

The British Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Dagger Award 2025 longlists were posted on April 16.

Finalists will be announced on May 29, with winners to be announced on July 3.

GOLD DAGGER

This award is for the best crime novel by an author of any nationality.

• A Divine Fury, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan)
• I Died at Fallow Hall, by Bonnie Burke-Patel (Bedford Square)
• Man of Bones, by Ben Creed (Mountain Leopard Press)
• The Bell Tower, by R.J. Ellory (Orion)
• The Hunter, by Tana French (Penguin)
• Guide Me Home, by Attica Locke (Profile)
• Book of Secrets, by Anna Mazzola (Orion)
• How to Solve Your Own Murder, by Kristen Perrin (Quercus)
• Nightwatching, by Tracy Sierra (Penguin)
• Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Zaffre)
• D Is for Death, by Harriet F. Townson (Hodder & Stoughton)
• The Innocents, by Bridget Walsh (Pushkin Press)

IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER

Eligible books in this category are thrillers set in any period and include, but are not limited to, spy fiction, psychological thrillers and action/adventure stories.

• Dark Ride, by Lou Berney (Hemlock Press)
• The Peacock and the Sparrow, by I.S. Berry (No Exit Press)
• The Cracked Mirror, by Chris Brookmyre (Abacus)
• Nobody’s Hero, by M.W. Craven (Constable)
• Run, by Blake Crouch (Macmillan)
• Sanctuary, by Garry Disher (Viper)
• What Happened to Nina? by Dervla McTiernan (HarperCollins)
• The God of the Woods, by Liz Moore (Borough Press)
• Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill & Secker)
• Blood Like Mine, by Stuart Neville (Simon & Schuster)
• All the Colours of the Dark, by Chris Whitaker (Orion)
• City in Ruins, by Don Winslow (Hemlock Press)

ILP JOHN CREASEY (NEW BLOOD) DAGGER

This award is for the best crime novel by a first-time author of any nationality.

• The Grief Doctor, by Jack Anderson (Raven)
• My Name Was Eden, by Eleanor Barker-White (HarperNorth)
• Miss Austen Investigates, by Jessica Bull (Michael Joseph)
• Knife River, by Justine Champine (Manilla Press)
• Three Burials, by Anders Lustgarten (Hamish Hamilton)
• A Curtain Twitcher’s Book of Murder, by Gay Marris (Bedford Square)
• All Us Sinners, by Katy Massey (Sphere)
• The Glass Woman, by Alice McIlroy (Datura)
• An Honest Living, by Dwyer Murphy (No Exit Press)
• Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Zaffre)
• Five by Five, by Claire Wilson (Michael Joseph)

HISTORICAL DAGGER

This award is for the best historical crime novel, set in any period up to 50 years prior to the year in which the award will be made.

• Munich Wolf, by Rory Clements (Zaffre)
• The Undoing of Violet Claybourne, by Emily Critchley (Manilla Press)
• Dr. Spilsbury and the Cursed Bride, by D.L. Douglas (Orion)
• Blood Roses, by Douglas Jackson (Canelo)
• Banquet of Beggars, by Chris Lloyd (Orion)
• Book of Secrets, by Anna Mazzola (Orion)
• Maude Horton’s Glorious Revenge, by Lizzie Pook (Picador)
• A Case of Mice and Murder, by Sally Smith (Raven)
• The Three Deaths of Justice Godfrey, by L.C. Tyler (Constable)
• The Betrayal of Thomas True, by A.J. West (Orenda)
• Poor Girls, by Clare Whitfield (Head of Zeus/Aries)

CRIME FICTION IN TRANSLATION DAGGER

This award is for a crime novel not originally written in English and which has been translated into English for UK publication.

• Artifice, by Claire Berest, translated by Sophie Lewis (Mountain Leopard)
• The Lover of No Fixed Abode, by Carlo Fruttero and Franco Lucentini, translated by Gregory Dowling (Bitter Lemon Press)
• Ruthless, by Anne Mette Hancock, translated by Tara Chase (Swift Press)
• Hotel Lucky Seven, by Kotaro Isaka, translated by Brian Bergstrom (Harvill Secker)
• The Silver Bone, by Andrey Kurkov, translated by Boris Dralyuk (MacLehose Press)
• Dogs and Wolves, by Hervé Le Corre, translated by Howard Curtis (Europa Editions UK)
• Going to the Dogs, by Pierre Lemaitre, translated by Frank Wynne (MacLehose Press)
• The Simple Art of Killing a Woman, by Patrícia Melo, translated by Sophie Lewis (Indigo Press)
• The Night of Baby Yaga, by Akira Otani, translated by Sam Bett (Faber & Faber)
• The Clues in the Fjord, by Satu Rämö, translated by Kristian London (Zaffre)
• Butter, by Asako Yuziki, translated by Polly Barton (Fourth Estate)
• Clean, by Alia Trabucco Zerán, translated by Sophie Hughes (Fourth Estate)

ALCS GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION 

This award is for any non-fiction work on a crime-related theme by an author of any nationality.

• Secrets From the Agatha Christie Archive, by Jared Cade (Pen & Sword)
• The Autistic Sleuth, by Chris Chan with Patricia Meyer 
Chan, Ph.D. (MX)
• Unmasking Lucy Letby, by Jonathan Coffey and Judith Moritz (Seven Dials)
• The Lady in the Lake, by Jeremy Craddock (Mirror)
• Framed, by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey (Hodder & Stoughton)
• The Criminal Mind, by Duncan Harding (Michael Joseph)
• Four Shots in the Night, by Henry Hemming (Quercus)
• The Book Forger, by Joseph Hone (Chatto & Windus)
• The Serial Killer Next Door, by Emma Kenny (Sphere)
• Getting Away with Murder, by Lynda LaPlante (Zaffre)
• Drawn Testimony, by Jane Rosenberg (Manilla Press)
• The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place, by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury Circus)

SHORT STORY DAGGER

This award is for any crime short story first published in the UK in English in a publication that pays for contributions, or broadcast in the UK in return for payment.

• “The Glorious Twelfth,” by S.J. Bennett (from Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards; Flame Tree Collections)
• “A Date on Yarmouth Pier,” by J.C. Berthal (from Midsummer Mysteries)
• “Parkrun,” by Ann Cleeves (from Murder in Harrogate, edited by Vaseem Khan; Orion)
• “The Valley of the Queens,” by Elly Griffiths (from The Man in Black and Other Stories, by Elly Griffiths; Quercus)
• “Why Harrogate?” by Janice Hallett (from Murder in Harrogate)
• “Murder in Masham,” by Vaseem Khan (from Murder in Harrogate)
• “The Perfect Smile,” by Clare Mackintosh (from Murder in Harrogate)
• “City Without Shadows,” by William Burton McCormick (from Midsummer Mysteries)
• “A Ruby Sun,” by Meeti Shroff-Shah (from Midsummer Mysteries)
• “Murder at the Turkish Baths,” by Ruth Ware (from Murder in Harrogate)

TWISTED DAGGER

The Twisted Dagger celebrates psychological thrillers, dark and twisty tales that often feature unreliable narrators, disturbed emotions, a healthy dose of moral ambiguity, and a sting in the tail. 

• The Neighbour’s Secret, by Sharon Bolton (Orion)
• The Perfect Couple, by N.J. Cracknell (Bloodhound)
• The Playdate, by Clara Dillon (Penguin Sandycove)
• Five Bad Deeds, by Caz Frear (Simon & Schuster UK)
• Missing White Woman, by Kellye Garrett (Simon & Schuster UK)
• Emma, Disappeared, by Andrew Hughes (Hachette Ireland)
• Beautiful People, by Amanda Jennings (HQ)
• The Stranger in Her House, by John Marrs (Thomas & Mercer)
• The Search Party, by Hannah Richell (Simon & Schuster UK)
• The Trials of Marjorie Crowe, by C.S. Robertson (Hodder & Stoughton)
• Nightwatching, by Tracy Sierra (Penguin)
• Look in the Mirror, by Catherine Steadman (Quercus)

WHODUNNIT DAGGER

The Whodunnit Dagger celebrates books where the sex, swearing, and bloodletting take place offstage–books that focus on the intellectual challenge at the heart of a good mystery, and which revolve around often quirky characters. Books in this category include cosy crime, traditional crime, and Golden Age-inspired mysteries.

• A Death in Diamonds, by S.J. Bennett (Zaffre)
• Murder at the Christmas Emporium, by Andreina Cordani (Zaffre)
• The Spy Coast, by Tess Gerritsen (Bantam)
• The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl, by Lisa Hall (Canelo Hera)
• The Final Act of Juliette Willoughby, by Ellery Lloyd (Macmillan)
• A Good Place to Hide a Body, by Laura Marshall (Hodder & Stoughton)
• The Mystery Guest, by Nita Prose (HarperFiction)
• A Matrimonial Murder, by Meeti Shroff-Shah (Joffe)
• A Case of Mice and Murder, by Sally Smith (Raven)
• The Mystery of the Crooked Man, by Tom Spencer (Pushkin Vertigo)
• Everyone On This Train Is a Suspect, by Benjamin Stevenson (Michael Joseph)
• Murder at the Matinee, by Jamie West (Brabinger)

DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY

The Dagger in the Library is a prize for a body of work by an established crime writer who has long been popular with borrowers from libraries, and who has supported libraries and their users.

• Richard Osman
• Janice Hallett
• Kate Atkinson
• Barbara Nadel
• C.J.Tudor
• Edward Marston
• Julia Chapman
• Lisa Jewell
• Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling)
• Tim Sullivan

PUBLISHERS’ DAGGER

This prestigious Dagger is awarded annually to the Best Crime and Mystery Publisher of the Year.

• Allison & Busby
• Bitter Lemon Press
• Canelo
• Faber & Faber
• Michael Joseph (Penguin Random House)
• Hemlock Press (HarperCollins)
• Orenda
• Orion Books
• Pan Macmillan
• Quercus
• Simon & Schuster
• Sphere (Little, Brown)

FINGERPRINT AWARDS

Capital Crime, a crime fiction con in London, has announced the 2025 Fingerprint Award shortlists. Here are two categories of interest to mystery readers. Readers can vote at this link from now through Saturday, May 31. Winners will be announced at the Capital Crime Festival in London on Thursday, June 12.

Overall Best Crime Book of the Year

• Murder on Lake Garda, by Tom Hindle (Century)
• All the Colours of the Dark, by Chris Whitaker (Orion)
• Midnight and Blue, by Ian Rankin (Orion)
• The Mercy Chair, by M.W. Craven (Constable)
• Nightwatching, by Tracey Sierra (Viking)

Thriller Book of the Year

• One Perfect Couple, by Ruth Ware (Simon & Schuster UK)
• A Violent Heart, by David Fennell (Zaffre)
• The Woman on the Ledge, by Ruth Mancini (Century)
• Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill Secker)
• The Missing Family, by Tim Weaver (Michael Joseph)